The present invention relates to a mobile fueling assembly comprised of pipes and swivel joints and, in particular, to an assembly having two pairs of swivel joints and sections of curved pipe therebetween to provide for the independent horizontal and vertical movement of the assembly.
Aircraft fueling operations require the rapid transport of fuel from a storage tank to the aircraft. Generally, fuel is available from a hydrant that may be located in a region of restricted mobility, for example, as a subterranean hydrant located below the surface of an airfield. In the past, flexible hoses have been used to acquire fuel from fueling hydrants (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 2,531,001 to Short). Flexible hoses have been made of fabric, rubber, and other polymers. The use of hoses to fuel aircraft presents many difficulties, including the lifting of the hose and the support of the weight of the hose and fuel contained therein. Thus the practical use of hoses is restricted to lightweight, narrow diameter flexible hoses. Other problems with flexible hoses is that aging and abrasion reduce the hose lifetime, and the high-pressure pumping of fuel results in stretching of the hose and a resultant lack of flexibility.
Fueling systems comprised of a succession of metal components, such as pipes, swivel joints, and couplings, are known in the art for the rapid fueling of vehicles. These fueling systems typically include a conduit having multiple curved pipe sections, where the ends of adjoining pipe sections are joined by swivel joints. The adjoining ends of each pair of adjacent pipe sections each have a circular cross-section and a common axis, and the swivel joint allows the two pipe sections to rotate about a common axis (the xe2x80x9caxis of rotationxe2x80x9d of the swivel joint). When one or both pipe sections adjacent to a swivel joint are curved, rotation about the axis of rotation results in an out-of-plane rotation of the pipe. In many fueling systems the curved pipe sections will have 90xc2x0 or 180xc2x0 bends, and thus the swivel joints allow the piping system to move in one plane, or in two or three mutually perpendicular planes.
Fueling systems having many metal components can be very heavy, and are typically mounted on the ground (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 3,891,004 to Knight), on a wheeled carrier, such as a motorized truck (U.S. Pat. No. 4,130,134 to Castle), on a carriage (U.S. Pat. No. 4,844,133 to von Meyerinck, et al.), or on a plurality of carriages (U.S. Pat. No. 4,658,873 to von Meyerinck, et al.).
When a wheeled carrier is used, the carrier and wheels are a source of weight and inertia that must be maneuvered in addition to the metal pipes and swivel joints. Positioning a wheeled carrier to enable mating the hydrant assembly with a hydrant can be difficult due to the inertia of starting and stopping the carrier and the difficulty of steering the carriage wheels. Positioning the wheeled carrier for mating is also difficult due to the inability of operators to simultaneously move the carrier and view the position of the coupling, especially where the hydrant is subterranean. As a result, a wheeled carrier system using metal components is less maneuverable than a flexible hose system.
The use of inflexible pipe segments in connecting fueling systems to a hydrant is accomplished, in some systems, by a hydrant assembly having multiple swivel joints oriented with mutually parallel axes of rotation. In several prior art references, the rotation of the swivel joints cooperates with the shape of curved pipe segments to allow the pipe between the swivel joints to rotate in a plane perpendicular to the axis of rotation. One prior art reference discloses a first pair of parallel swivel joints followed by a second pair of parallel swivel joints, where the axes of rotation of all of the swivel joints are all parallel to each other. The swivel joints facilitate the extension of a conduit or jib.
Another prior art reference includes three or more loading arms for loading fuel in a truck, wherein each loading arm is attached to a storage reservoir and has a free end for attaching to the truck. Each arm includes a pair of swivel joints whose axis of rotation are parallel, followed by a second pair of swivel joints having parallel axis of rotation that are perpendicular to the axes of rotation of the first pair. The positioning of the plurality of arms having staggered swivel joints and curved pipe sections allows a plurality of loading arms to be used independently without interfering with the movement of one another, and allows for a plurality of different tanks to be fueled at the same time. Also included in this reference is a counterbalance mechanism associated with one of the swivel joints that allows easier horizontal movement of the free end of the loading arm, thus permitting easier manipulation of the free end.
Another reference describes a pair of adjacent swivel joints having parallel axis of rotation and having curved pipe sections positioned near a hydrant coupling. These swivel joints cooperate with the curved pipe sections to facilitate horizontal adjustments of a hydrant coupling in order to enable the coupling to mate with a hydrant. An additional pair of swivel joints having parallel axes of rotation in a plane perpendicular to the first pair is also described, allowing movement of the hydrant coupling in a vertical plane. While this assembly permits movement of the hydrant coupling in two perpendicular planes, the additional pair of swivel joints are separated by a carriage and by an additional swivel joint. In addition, while a counterbalance mechanism is included to balance the rotational force on one of the swivel joints resulting from the weight of the components, the second pair of swivel joints rotate independently with one another. The independent rotation of the second pair of swivel joints can result in some maneuverability problems, especially within a confined space.
Another reference describes a fluid conveyor system useful for extending delivery to a controllable height. The system has a plurality of swivel joints having parallel axis of rotation joining pipe sections having a combined curved and straight pipe section between the swivel joints that execute a 180xc2x0 bend between successive swivel joints. The swivel joints are constrained to move laterally from one another, and the arrangement allows for the elongation of the fluid conveyor system by laterally increasing the spacing of the swivel joints. The fluid conveyor system thus provides an apparatus for controlling the spacing of one end of the system relative to the other along a single axis. The swivel joint assembly does not provide for easily moving the assembly in a direction perpendicular to the single axis.
In general, the prior art solutions for transporting large quantities of fluid between two points, such as the fueling of an aircraft from a hydrant buried below the surface of the tarmac, are either difficult to maneuver and manipulate, or are not capable of handling flow rates needed to refuel large aircraft. What is needed is an apparatus that has features permitting it to be generally useful for fueling a wide variety aircraft quickly, and can easily accommodate different hydrant positions and aircraft positions. In addition, the apparatus should be easily maneuverable and capable of being easily positioned to make the necessary fluid connections, should be compatible with existing fueling infrastructure, and should be easy to operate.
The present invention provides an apparatus for delivering fluids that addresses the limitations of the prior art and provides for fueling a wide variety aircraft quickly and easily. In accordance with the present invention, a hydrant assembly is provided that overcomes the above-identified problems of prior art fuel-supply coupling arms by enabling greater maneuverability, especially when coupling to a fuel hydrant located in the confines of a subterranean compartment
It is an advantage of the present invention to enhance the mobility of a hydrant assembly in relation to a fueling hydrant.
Another advantage of the present invention is to facilitate coupling of a hydrant assembly to a fueling hydrant, where the hydrant occurs in a confined structure, and where the coupling of the hydrant assembly and fueling hydrant occurs in a confined structure.
An additional advantage is to facilitate coupling of a hydrant assembly to a fueling hydrant, where the hydrant is positioned as a subterranean container, and where the coupling of the hydrant assembly and fueling hydrant occurs in a subterranean container.
It is another advantage of the present invention to provide a hydrant assembly for releasably connecting to a hydrant, where the assembly moves according to the rotation of two pairs of swivel joints and the cooperation with curved pipe sections.
It is yet another advantage of the present invention to provide a hydrant assembly for releasably connecting to a hydrant, where the assembly moves in a horizontal plane and a vertical plane.
It is a key aspect of the present invention to provide a hydrant assembly for transferring a fluid through a conduit between a first end connectable to a hydrant and a second end. The assembly includes a platform adapted for moving along the ground and connected to the second end, a first pair of swivel joints rigidly connected and having parallel axes of rotation; and a second pair of swivel joints rigidly connected and having parallel axes of rotation, where one of the first pair of swivel joints is rigidly connected to one of the second pair of swivel joints, and where the parallel axes of rotation of the first pair of swivel joints is perpendicular to the parallel axes of the second pair of swivel joints. In one embodiment, a swivel joint is provided at said second end of said conduit; and a support is provided near said first end of said conduit. The conduit so provided is movable about said swivel joint to a first position where said conduit is extended from said platform and said first end is supported on the ground by said support, and a second position where said conduit is supported by said platform.
It is another aspect of the present invention to provide a hydrant assembly for transferring a fluid through a conduit between a first end connectable to a hydrant and a second end. The assembly includes a platform adapted for moving along the ground and connected to the second end, a first pair of swivel joints rigidly connected, where each of the first pair of swivel joints has an axes of rotation, and where rotation of the first pair of swivel joints moves the first end in a plane vertical to the ground; and a second pair of swivel joints rigidly connected, where each of the second pair of swivel joints has an axes of rotation, where rotation of the second pair of swivel joints moves the first end in a plane horizontal to the ground. In one embodiment of this aspect of the invention, a swivel joint is provided at said second end of said conduit; and a support is provided near said first end of said conduit. The conduit so provided is movable about said swivel joint to a first position where said conduit is extended from said platform and said first end is supported on the ground by said support, and a second position said conduit is supported by said platform.
It is yet another aspect of the present invention to provide a mobile hydrant assembly forming a conduit between a first end connectable to a hydrant and a second end. The assembly includes a platform adapted for moving along the ground and connected to said second end, and a plurality of swivel joints disposed along said conduit to allow said first end to move in two perpendicular directions. One of said plurality of swivel joints is supported by said platform, and the conduit is movable about said swivel joint to a first position and a second position. The first position has the conduit extended from said platform with the first end supported on the ground by said support. The second position has the conduit folded onto and supported by the platform.
A further understanding of the invention can be had from the detailed discussion of specific embodiments below. For purposes of clarity, this discussion refers to devices, methods, and concepts in terms of specific examples. However, the method of the present invention may operate with a wide variety of types of devices. It is therefore intended that the invention not be limited by the discussion of specific embodiments.